1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods and systems for providing information over a network to a user of the network and, more particularly, to methods and systems for providing data searching, alert notification, and automated data presentation functions to customers of financial services.
2. Related Art
Traditionally, persons receiving relatively large numbers of negotiable instruments, for example checks, obtained one or more so-called lockboxes to receive the checks. Frequently, lockboxes are located at Post Offices and the checks for a particular person are delivered to a designated lockbox or lockboxes in one or more Post Offices. Alternatively, the lockbox may be a designated address at a financial institution which processes the received checks.
Usually, persons receiving large numbers of checks are business concerns who also seek financial services. Indeed, these business concerns desire one or more checking accounts to receive the proceeds from the checks and, thereafter, draw proceeds from the checking accounts via withdrawals. Providers of financial services for these business concerns have recognized that it is desirable to provide certain information regarding the checks (or receipts) received in a lockbox to the business concern. Such information consist of particular parameters of the checks, for example, the remitter name, serial number, bank number, routing number, payment amount, etc. This information is typically gathered and stored in a computer database.
Storage of the information in a computer database is usually accomplished by entering values of the parameters relating to the checks into an index file containing fields. The index files are then appropriately addressed and cross cataloged such that they may be retrieved on command and the information contained therein may be provided to a customer (e.g., a business concern) of the financial service provider.
Image files of the checks delivered to a particular lockbox are also produced and stored such that they may later be accessed by the financial service provider or customer.
Although financial service providers have been able to provide customers with the ability to search the databases containing the index and image files, it has not been possible heretofore to perform analytic analyses on the data contained in the image files and provide the results of the analytic analyses to the customer. Further, it has not been possible to automatically alert a customer that a particular check has been received in the lockbox or that some other condition which is a function of the data in the index files has been met. Still further, it has not been possible to automatically adjust an interface between the database and the customer such that the so-called "look and feel" of the interface is personalized to the preferences of the user.